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Brook Lodge Care HomeEssex

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Rated:Requires ImprovementResidential

Brook Lodge Care Home

Ghyll Grove, Basildon, SS14 2LA
01268904375
Care Type

Residential Care

Assessment date

7 April 2026

Provider

Danforth Care No. 1 Limited

Beds

66 beds

How this home compares nearby

Of 22 care homes for older people within 5 miles, 19 are rated higher by CQC, 3 are the same and none are lower.

None of these nearby homes has been inspected more recently than this one.

Based on CQC ratings, updated 23 October 2026. How we compare homes | See the nearby homes

Rating history

  1. Requires ImprovementJun 2026

First inspected by CQC in 2026, rated Requires Improvement.

Source: CQC inspection reports. Contains CQC data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Costs and who runs this home

Run by Danforth Care No. 1 Limited, which runs 6 care homes in England: 1 rated Good, 1 Requires Improvement and 4 not yet rated.

Average care home fees in the East of England: £1,034 a week for residential care and £1,411 for nursing care (2024-25 averages). Self-funders usually pay more. See our care home costs guide.

  • This home lists dementia care, which usually costs more than standard residential care. See dementia care home costs. NHS Continuing Healthcare may apply where someone's needs are primarily health needs.
  • How to pay for a care home explains the council means test, what counts as capital and the funding you can ask to be assessed for.

About Brook Lodge Care Home

Brook Lodge Care Home, in Essex, provides accommodation and personal care for up to 66 people, including older people and those living with dementia. It currently requires improvement overall. The CQC found breaches relating to safe care and governance, with medicines not always managed safely, inconsistent incident recording, and gaps in reviewing care plans and repositioning people at risk of skin damage.

Staffing levels had mixed feedback, with high use of temporary staff affecting continuity, and staff supervision was inconsistent. Inspectors found staff treated people with kindness, though communication and activities were also seen as areas needing improvement. The service was receiving support from the local authority and healthcare partners to help drive progress.

Source: CQC assessment, 15 June 2026

Specialist Care

DementiaOlder peoplePhysical disabilitiesYounger adults

Fees and availability

We have not verified a current weekly fee for this home. Ask for a written quote based on the room and care needed, including any extra charges.

Check current vacancies, the admission assessment and visiting arrangements directly with the home.

Care and inspection details

Checked against the CQC register on 20 September 2026. This is a check of published information, not a visit to the home.

Registered service
Care home service without nursing
Registered capacity
66 places — this is not a vacancy count
Registration checked
Registered · SS14 2LA

Registered care categories

Caring for adults over 65 yrs; Caring for adults under 65 yrs; Dementia; Physical disabilities.

These describe the registration. The home must assess whether it can meet the individual person's needs and whether a place is available.

CQC ratings in more detail

Overall rating shown by CQC: Requires Improvement.

Assessment published 15 June 2026. Assessment date recorded: 7 April 2026.

Read CQC's assessment overview

The following is CQC's published account of its assessment, published 15 June 2026. References to “we” mean CQC. It describes findings at that time.

Brook Lodge Care Home is a care home providing accommodation and personal care for up to 66 people. At the time of our assessment, 49 people were living at the service. The service provides care and support for older people. The assessment was carried out from 20 April to 18 May 2026.

The location is dual registered with 2 providers: Care UK Care Services Ltd and Danforth Care No1 Ltd. The service was previously inspected under Danforth Care No1 Ltd, where it was rated good. At the time of this inspection, there was no current rating in place for the location under Care UK Care Services Ltd.

This inspection was carried out in response to risks identified in relation to staffing and risk management. During the inspection, we identified 2 breaches of regulation relating to people’s safe care and treatment and governance arrangements.

Medicines were not always managed safely. This included the administration of ‘as required’ (PRN) medicines prescribed to support people during periods of distress. Systems used to document incidents where people experienced distressed reactions were disorganised, with both paper-based and electronic records in use, which did not always align. As a result, we were not assured this information could be used effectively to understand what people living with dementia may have been trying to communicate, or to identify patterns and implement proactive strategies to reduce and prevent distress.

The provider had recently taken action to ensure gaps in the rota were consistently covered; however, feedback regarding staffing levels remained mixed. Observations carried out during the inspection did not identify concerns about staffing levels. However, staff told us there were occasions when a high number of temporary staff were used, which impacted continuity of care, as these staff did not always know people well.

Risks to people’s care and support had been assessed; however, further work was required to ensure that when people’s needs changed, all sections of their care plans were reviewed and updated accordingly. People at high risk of poor skin integrity were not always repositioned in line with their risk assessments, which increased the risk of further skin deterioration.

Governance processes were not robust, and audits and monitoring systems had not identified all the issues we found during the assessment.

Staff feedback about their roles was also mixed; some staff told us they enjoyed their work, while others expressed concerns about their roles and the frequency and consistency of supervision and support.

Further work was needed to ensure staff had a good understanding of the Mental Capacity Act. Systems and checks were in place to support safe recruitment. People’s needs were assessed prior to admission.

Staff were observed to treat people with kindness and compassion during our visits.

The service was receiving support from the local authority and healthcare partners to improve people’s quality of life and safety.

We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to the concerns found at this assessment.

Safe
Requires Improvement
Effective
Requires Improvement
Caring
Requires Improvement
Responsive
Requires Improvement
Well-led
Requires Improvement

Questions prompted by these ratings

  • Safe: What changes have been made to medicines, staffing and safeguarding since this rating?
  • Effective: How are staff training, nutrition and health outcomes checked now?
  • Caring: How do staff protect privacy, dignity and each person’s choices?
  • Responsive: How are care plans, activities and complaints adapted to each resident?
  • Well-led: What has changed in management, checks and oversight since this rating?

These are questions for your visit, not a claim about conditions today.

Read Brook Lodge Care Home's CQC record and reports.

Contains Care Quality Commission information under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Ratings and registration details can change after the date checked.

5 Questions to Ask on Your Visit

When visiting Brook Lodge Care Home, consider asking...

  1. 1.What specific dementia training do staff receive and how recently?
  2. 2.How do you support a resident who becomes distressed or confused?
  3. 3.How does the home keep a record of a resident's life history and personal preferences?
  4. 4.How do you involve families as dementia progresses and communication becomes harder?
  5. 5.What happens when a resident's dementia reaches an advanced stage?

5 Things to Look For on Your Visit

When you visit Brook Lodge Care Home, look out for...

  1. 1.Is the environment calm, uncluttered and easy to navigate?
  2. 2.Do staff speak to residents with patience and dignity, even if they repeat themselves?
  3. 3.Are there memory cues around the home -- photos, familiar objects, clear signage?
  4. 4.Do residents seem settled and safe, or agitated and unsupervised?
  5. 5.Is there meaningful activity happening, or are residents just sitting quietly with nothing to do?

Could the NHS fund Brook Lodge Care Home's fees?

The average nursing home costs £1,535 per week. That's £79,820 a year. NHS Continuing Healthcare could cover all of it. No means test, no contribution from you.

Location

Ghyll Grove, Basildon, SS14 2LA

CQC Logo

Brook Lodge Care Home

CQC overall rating

Requires Improvement

Assessment date: 7 April 2026

View full inspection report
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